Last Updated on January 16, 2026
The Influence of the Velvet Underground with special guest Dave Lennon (Lost in the Groove Podcast)
What happens when two podcast hosts—one from sunny Florida, the other from soggy Suffolk—sit down to worship at the altar of The Velvet Underground? Absolute chaos, that’s what.
In this episode of Beat Motel, Andrew is joined by Dave Lennon from Lost in the Groove to unravel the weird, wonderful, and often dysfunctional legacy of Lou Reed and co. Expect deep dives into the genius of John Cale, Nico’s awkward-but-iconic vocals, and why Mo Tucker deserved better.
Along the way, we also offend Replacements fans, ponder what David Bowie talked about while curling one out, and discuss how Arctic Monkeys gave a pension to a punk poet. There’s also a band called Prolapse. Yes, really.
If you’re a Velvet Underground hater, stay tuned. You might just learn something… or at least laugh at our expense.
Featuring:
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Nico’s German glamour and tragic misdiagnosis
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John Cale’s Welsh wizardry
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Lou Reed: songwriting genius or professional nightmare?
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How VU inspired noise rock, punk, and half of Andrew’s record collection
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Bands that owe everything to VU (but won’t admit it)
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Why the Jesus & Mary Chain sound like a hangover in church
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Shoutouts to Prolapse, Arctic Monkeys, Spacemen 3, and more
This is the most passionate episode we’ve done about a band, It’s chaos. It’s love. It’s The Velvet Underground.
### Riffs of the week
#### Dave Lennon’s Riff
– Harry Nilsson – Without You (2:06)
#### Andrew’s Riff
– Pijn – Our endless hours (5:23)
### Dave Lennon’s track choices
1. The Velvet Underground – Sweet Jane (2:29)
2. The Velvet Underground – Tomorrow’s Parties (2:49)
3. The Velvet Underground – Sunday Morning (opening)
4. The Velvet Underground – Run Run (3:36)
### Andrew’s track choices
1. Spacemen 3 – Come down easy (2:39)
2. The Jesus and Mary Chain – Snakedriver (opening)
3. The Arctic Monkeys – Cornerstone (1:23)
4. Prolapse – Flex (9:11)
Email us – beatmotel@lawsie.com
